Florida National Guardsman in town to assist with RNC unintentionally shot with own gun

21-year-old Michael Wdowiak is a Florida National Guardsman out of Ocala, Florida. He is in Tampa with his unit to assist with the Republican National Convention. Thursday night he was in a hotel room in St. Petersburg with three other people. Another Florida Guardsman, 26-year-old Jeffrey Spurr, was checking out the grip on Wdowiak's .357 revolver when he unintentionally discharged the gun.
Wdowiak was struck in the upper chest and hand and taken to the local hospital for surgery on the wounds.
According to police alcohol does not appear to be a factor and currently no charges are being filed.
"The unit is here to assist at the RNC," said a spokesperson for the sheriff. She did not specify what their role at the RNC entailed.
The incident comes just a day after a Secret Service agent assigned to Mitt Romney left her loaded handgun in the bathroom of the campaign plane. The gun was found by a CBS News producer.

Unintentional shot inside van wounds 4-year-old

A mother and her four children were traveling on Highway 54 in Jonesboro, Georgia when the mother heard a pop in the backseat. According to police, "She looked back into the backseat and saw that her 4-year-old daughter was slumped over. She had been shot while she was in the car seat."
The woman pulled over and called 911. The girl, who was shot in the head, was airlifted to the children's hospital in Atlanta. Police said she was in critical condition.
Police found a gun inside the van but would not say if the girl shot herself of if she was shot by one of the other children inside the van.
The incident remains under investigation.

Man shoots gun in air to try and stop people from fighting, bullet hits and kills innocent bystander

21-year-old Anton Louis, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was trying to intimidate some people and also prevent a fight so he fired a .40-caliber Smith and Wesson semi-automatic handgun into the air. The bullet struck 28-year-old Derrion Banks who was standing on the second-story landing in front of his apartment unit.
Derrion was hit in the chest and right arm. He died from the gunshot wounds.
Police received a tip saying the two suspects, Anton Louis and Terrel Johnson, were in a maroon Cadillac at a nearby Walmart. Police stopped the car and asked the driver, Louis' father and the two passengers, Louis and Johnson, if they could search the car for handguns. All three agreed.
Detectives found the .40-caliber handgun wrapped in a sock, stuck in a shoe, inside a suitcase in the trunk.
According to reports, Louis initially admitted to firing the gun in order to stop a fight. He later changed his story and said he did not shoot the gun and challenged detectives to produce an eyewitness to the shooting.
Louis was arrested and charged with one count of murder.

Woman trying to shoot skunk unintentionally shoots husband instead.

A College Station, Texas woman was trying to shoot a skunk that was eating from the cat bowls that she kept outside the back porch. She got her .45-caliber handgun (which she keeps in her purse and for which she has a concealed weapons permit) and shot at the skunk as it was near the bowls.
She missed. The bullet ricocheted off the porch, went through the back door and struck her husband in the abdomen. The bullet missed his vital organs and lodged in his hip. He was airlifted to the hospital in Houston where he was treated and released the next day.
Police will present their findings to the prosecutor.
"Discharging a firearm in that situation was probably not good judgment," said the county sheriff. "It certainly was reckless but I don't know if anyone would be served if any charges were to be filed."

Man unintentionally shoots wife while couple sleeping in bed

San Antonio, Texas police responded to a shooting at an unidentified couple's home in the 7400 block of Pipers Bluff just before 3 a.m. Monday morning.
According to reports, the husband keeps an loaded, unlocked handgun on his nightstand. He told police that somehow the gun was in his bed and that he rolled over on the gun and, not knowing what it was, grabbed it. He unintentionally discharged the gun, shooting his wife in the stomach.
The woman was taken to the hospital in serious condition. Police said they are treating this as an accidental shooting and have not charged the man.

All 9 people injured in Empire State Building shooting were wounded by police

A police investigation has shown that all nine of the people injured in Friday's shooting outside of the Empire State Building were wounded by police gunfire.
The incident began Friday morning when 58-year-old Jeffrey Johnson waited outside his former place of employment and shot and killed his former manager, 41-year-old Steve Ercolino.
Johnson then calmly walked away, around the corner of the Empire State Building to Fifth Avenue. A construction worker who saw the shooting altered police. Two police officers confronted Johnson and when he pulled out a gun they opened fire, killing him.
One officer shot nine rounds while the other shot seven. In addition to killing Johsnon, nine bystanders were injured. Three of the victims suffered gunshot wounds and the other six were hit by fragments. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said, "It appears that all nine of the victims were struck either by fragments or by bullets fired by police."
Six of the wounded were treated and released from the hospital while three of the wounded remain hospitalized.
As Gail Collins writes in her Saturday column,"This isn't surprising; it's only in movies that people are good shots during a violent encounter." Collins continues:

"And these are people trained for this kind of crisis. The moral is that if a lunatic starts shooting, you will not be made safer if your fellow average citizens are carrying concealed weapons.

We are never going to have a sane national policy on guns until the gun advocates give up on the fantasy that the best protection against armed psychopaths bent on random violence is regular people with loaded pistols on their belts."

5-year-old girl unintentionally shoots father

A 5 1/2 year old girl was sleeping in her parents' bedroom in their home in the Rhodes Ranch development in Las Vegas, Nevada. At around 8 a.m. in the morning the little girl took a loaded, unlocked handgun from a nightstand and unintentionally shot her father in the arm.
The bullet lodged in this 38-year-old man's arm and he was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. He is expected to recover.
Police said there were a number of other guns in the house that were locked in a gun safe but the handgun was out in the open.
"This was just a tragic accident that could have been a lot worse," said a police spokesperson.
The police are investigating the incident to determine if charges will be filed against the parents for leaving a gun where a child can gain access. The Department of Family Services has also opened an investigation.

Two men unintentionally shot when man takes gun off of gun rack

44-year-old Allen Lee King, of White County, Arkansas was taking a gun off of a gun rack in a bedroom when he unintentionally discharged the gun. The bullet went through the wall into the kitchen and hit two men sitting at the kitchen table.
The bullet struck Jacob Morris, 30, in the shoulder, exited through his neck and went on to hit James Mitchell, 32, in the chest. Both men were taken to the hospital and are expected to recover.
Police are still investigating the incident.

Transit cop unintentionally shoots man during arrest

An unidentified NYPD transit cop unintentionally discharged his weapon during an arrest in Harlem Tuesday night.
Police arrested 47-year-old Richard Pearson, a homeless man with an extensive police record. Pearson allegedly grabbed $40 off of an outside table at a Mexican restaurant.
Two transit police were trying to cuff Pearson when he started struggling. One officer went to put his service gun back in his holster to assist in the arrest when he unintentionally discharged the weapon.
The Sig Sauer 9mm handgun fired one round, hitting Pearson in the right calf.
"I thought my finger was off the trigger," the cop allegedly said. The 30-year-old officer has been with NYPD for five years and has been placed on administrative duties during the investigation.
Pearson was taken to the hospital for treatment and was later charged with petit larceny and resisting arrest.

Gun dealer unintentionally shoots himself while setting up for gun show

40-year-old Eric Kinsinger, a gun dealer from Fort Mill, South Carolina, was setting up his table at the Dixie Gun & Knife Classic show in Charlotte, North Carolina. According to police, Kinsinger unintentionally shot himself with a Smith & Wesson .40-caliber handgun.
"He was taking the gun out to display it and pulled the trigger and it went off," said the local police captain.
Kinsinger was shot in the hand and transported to the local hospital for treatment for the non life-threatening injury.

Man unintentionally shoots self in penis, arrested for illegal firearm possession

36-year-old Tavares Colbert, of Oklahoma City, OK, was on his way to sell a handgun. He told police he had had problems with the gun in the past so he pulled over to make sure the gun was working properly. When he tried to force the slide back he unintentionally discharged the weapon. The bullet hit him in the penis.
Colber was able to drive himself to the hospital.
Police investigating the incident arrested Colbert for being a felon in possession of a firearm. After he was released from the hospital police booked him into the county jail.

Man unintentionally shoots self in butt while watching TV

20-year-old Kyle Bassler, of Derry, New Hampshire, was at a cottage in Rome, Maine. He was hunting a nuisance squirrel with a .22-caliber handgun. He put the handgun in a holster, which was fitted inside his pants, and went back inside the cottage.
The police report doesn't give specifics about how the gun discharged. It reads, "Bassler claimed that he sat in a chair and was watching TV when he heard the gun go off and felt a subsequent burning sensation on his backside. Bassler stood up and realized that the firearm had discharged and that he was, in fact, shot."
He was taken to the hospital where doctors removed the bullet from his buttocks. He is expected to make a full recovery.

For the second time in two years a house on Vermont road is hit by stray bullet.

Two years ago, then 75-year-old Peter Damone was standing on his back porch in Bridport, Vermont when he was hit by a bullet. The .45-caliber bullet was traced to a man half a mile away who was target practicing in his backyard. Damone just barely survived the incident. The bullet severed an artery leading to his tongue and lodged in his neck.
Last week, Damone's neighbor, Rick Scott, found a new bullet lodged in the second-floor office on his home. Scott told police he suspects the bullet came from a coyote hunter who was seen on the road shooting in the direction of his house.
"I am a member of the NRA, a supporter of the Second Amendment and I own and shoot guns," said Scott. "Incidents like this and the tragedy that befell my neighbor Peter not that long ago, cause me to reconsider my position. People that won't refrain from reckless behavior should not be allowed to possess lethal weapons."
Police are still trying to locate the hunter.

Missouri man unintentionally shoots and kills wife

Earl Kuschel, of New Haven, Missouri, was in his work shop, sighting a scope on his 22 caliber rifle. He fired a shot through the open door of the shed at a target in his yard.
Unfortunately, he did not see his wife, 63-year-old Ruth Ann, come around the corner. The bullet struck her in the upper chest.
Earl attempted CPR until the ambulance arrived. Ruth Ann was pronounced dead by the ambulance crew.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by a son and two grandchildren.

Son buys gun for mother's protection. She unintentionally shoots him.

75-year-old Nellie McCallister, of Columbus, Ohio was worried about a local prowler known as the "Hilltop Creeper." So her son, a former Marine, bought her a .357 Magnum handgun for protection.
Nellie was showing the gun at a backyard gathering. She thought the gun was unloaded and unintentionally discharged the gun. The bullet hit her son in the leg.
Nellie's 14-year-old granddaughter told reporters that her grandmother cried all night after the shooting and said she will never again touch a gun.

15-year-old hit in head by stray bullet while riding in car with parents

15-year-old Danielle Sampson, of Ocoee, Florida was driving with her parents Sunday on the way to buy her mother a birthday present. According to Danielle's sister, Baje, the family was driving through Pine Hills when the father heard gunfire coming from two approaching vehicles. The next thing he knew, his daughter was slumped over in the back seat.
Danielle was shot in the back of the head. She is now in Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children, unconscious and on a ventilator fighting for her life.

Danielle's family and friends held a prayer vigil on Wednesday. "Stop the killing. Start living. Choose peace," chanted the crowd.
Baje reminded the gathering that "There's a lot of Danielles."
No arrests have been made in the shooting. A reward of $26,000 is offered for information leading to an arrest.

Man unintentionally shoots his friend at Hooters

36-year-old Christopher Bohn, of Manassas, Virginia, was with friends at a Hooters restaurant in Chantilly. According to police, "he had just left an event for which he had to unload his handgun" and decided to reload the gun in the restaurant.
Bohn unintentionally discharged the handgun, shooting his friend in the ankle. The 22-year-old woman was taken to an area hospital with non life-threatening injuries.
Police could not confirm whether or not Bohn had a concealed weapons permit but they did arrest him and charge him with willfully discharging firearms in a public place.